NMFS Area Representatives should identify local available 

 prospects for faculty appointments in advance. Expertise 

 available in each area will also be investigated by the Miami 

 LaOjoratory in consultation with the SEDS Network Coordinator. 

 Our primary interest in each area should be to find people to do 

 clinical necropsies and histopathological collection, and 

 secondarily to do the other analyses. 



Area Representatives must ensure that Network Participants 

 remain aware of the importance of data collection. Care must be 

 taken in the collection of all data, as some participants are 

 prone to collect only ceirtain data. The protocol being developed 

 by Sylvia Galloway will clarify data collection requirements and 

 procedxires . 



Discussion fi£ Specimen Storage aiul TmilBferL Larry Hansen 



Specimen Storage: 



It is important to know what facilities eure available. 

 Ultra-cold freezers are necessary for storing tissues for toxin, 

 biotoxin, and metal analyses. One cubic foot per animal is 

 sufficient. If a regular chest freezer is used, place the 

 specimens as far towards the back as possible before they are 

 shipped to a facility which has an ultra-cold freezer. 



Sei^ile Care: 



A standard set of tissue will be collected. Life history 

 seunples include teeth, stomachs, and reproductive organs. 

 Contaminant analysis samples are organs such as the liver, 

 kidney, and blubber. Detailed collection procedures will be in 

 the protocol. Tissues will be sent to Miami or Charleston for 

 distribution to the appropriate laboratory. Each facility must 

 have temporary storage capability for both frozen and formalin- 

 stored samples. 



Basic M*ii-i nm M»i—»»i Stranding I^ta Reporting; Ben Blaylock 



A primary purpose of this meeting was to establish the real- 

 time marine mtunmal stranding reporting system. Prom data 

 obtained within 96 hours of the discovery of a marine mammal 

 strzmding, the Miami Laboratory will produce a summary of 

 regional stremding activities, listing data such as species, 

 year, state, sex, county, condition, and fishery interactions. 

 To implement the system. Area Representatives received a set of 

 computer disks %ihich allow automated reporting of level A data 

 directly to the Mieuai Laboratory's mainframe computer, and a 

 memual describing the reporting system. The data collected in 



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